Golf cup



May 12, 1970 J. SAND'BRG GOLF CUP Filed sep';.^2'2, l19s? WIWIUI .a2-ll.

INVENTOR. JOSEPH c. SANDBERG i i i l gli "WIWI HIS ATTORNEY 3United States- Patent O `'ABSTRACTQF DISCLOSURE` A golf cup having a cylindrical sidewall, a cup bottom connected lto one end of the sidewalls and an elongated sleeve secured to the bottom forsupporting a location flag withinthelcupAn inner receptacle, also having a cylin- .drically shaped'sidewall, is provided to snugly lfit within lthe golf clip'- and be supported on the cups bottom. The receptacle is filled with growing lawn that willgform a contiguouslawn surfacel toconcealthe golf cup when the receptacle is placedfin thecup and Ythecup is positioned in a lawn surface. A fiange with a downwardly extending sleeve vean he.. .secured to vthetop endl of the receptacle which restsf on the top edge of the golf cup toassist in ysupporting thereceptacle .and prevent dirt from falling bej:tween:ajthe receptacles sidewalls'` and the golf cup.

This invention relatestoafgolf. cup, and in particular, to a golf cup which is adapted to beuconcealedI when not in use, .Je

Over the years the game of golfmhas become very popuv lar. As a result, some'individuals have provided at least one golf hole in their back yard even though their yard is quite small. While such arrangements are entirely suited for their intended purpose, the hole is often unsightly in appearance'when the yard is to be used for purposes other than golfing, and in addition, it proves to be an obstruction to normal yard use unless it is covered.

It is the principal object of this invention to provide a golf cup, adapted to be used in an individuals yard, which is fitted with an inner receptacle filled with lawn when the golf cup is not being used for golfing purposes. c

Briefly, the invention comprises a golf cup having a cylindrically shaped sidewall and with a cup bottom connected to one end of the sidewall. The cup bottom has an elongated sleeve secured to and extending downwardly from its bottom surface, and in communication with the a interior of the cup formed by the sidewall so that it will serve as a drain from the lowermost portion of the interior of the cup and will support a vertically extending location flag when the cup is embedded in the ground in an operative position. An inner receptacle, sized to snugly lit within the golf cup and preferably to be supported at both the cups bottom and top ends, is filled with growing lawn so that when the receptacle is positioned within the golf cup the cup is substantially concealed.

So that the invention may be more readily understood and carried into effect, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which are offered by way of example only and are not to be taken as limiting the invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims, which obviously embrace equivalent structures.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a top view of the inner receptacle of this invention positioned within the golf cup.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of FIG. 1 taken in the plane of line 22.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the golf cup, with a location flag positioned therein, taken in a plane passed through the proximate center of the cup.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the golf cup with the inner receptacle positioned within the cup.

Patented May 12, 1970 p ice FIG. 5 is a partial side view of the top edge of the inner receptacle showing one type of handle for lifting the inner receptacle from the golf cup. For purposes of clarity, a portion of the top edge is shown broken away.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, there is shown a golf cup 10 with an inner receptacle 12 sized to fit within cup 10. The golf cup comprises a cylindrically shaped sidewall 14, open at top end 16 and closed at the other end by a lbottom 18 that is connected to sidewall 14 at an angle, designated as angle R. Angle R is shown as being degrees, but it should be apparent that this can be varied between about 90 and 135 degrees so that water accumulating on the bottom will drain through sleeve 20 and the bottom 18 will still support the inner receptacle 12 as hereafter described. An elongated sleeve 20, for supporting a location flag 22, is secured to the bottom surface of bottom 18, which extends away from the interior of the cup, with its center axis essentially parallel to the cups center axis. The interior of sleeve 20 is in communication with the interior of sidewall 14 so that the location flag can be passed through the center of the cup and into sleeve 20. Because the sleeve 20 extends downwardly from the lowermost portion of the interior of cup 10, water received by the cup will drain freely therefrom. Preferably, sleeve 20 is 1/2 to 2 inches in length and has an inside diameter slightly larger than the outside diameter of the flag or pin 22 that is to be supported therein. As shown in the drawings, cup 10 is em'- beddedin ground 24 so that the cups top edge 16 is proximate the upper surface 26 of the ground.

Once the golf cup 10 is buried within the ground it -can be used for golfing purposes. However, when the over a substantial portion of its bottom surfaceon bottom 18 of cup 10, i.e., bottom surface 32 of bottom 30 rests on the top surface of cup bottom 18. Accordingly, any pressure applied to the top of inner receptacle 12 is distributed to the bottom of golf cup 10. An opening or port 34 is provided through bottom 30 which is substantially aligned with the interior of sleeve 20 to drain receptacle 12, i.e., so that liquid passed into inner receptacle 12 freely ows through port 34 into sleeve 20 and from thence into ground 24. Top flange 36 with downwardly extending sleeve 37 connected to its periphery is secured to the top edge of receptacle sidewall 28. Flange 36 extends over the top edge 16 of cup sidewall 14 and sleeve 37 extends downwardly over sidewall 14 about 1A; to 1/2 inch to prevent materials from passing between the golf cup and the inner receptacle where it may tend to bind the receptacle within the golf cup. In addition, flange 36 and sleeve 37 impart rigidity and strength to the upper edge of the receptacle so that it retains its cylindrical shape even when packed with soil used for supporting lawn growth. Preferably flange 36 is positioned to rest on the top edge 16 of sidewall 14 to aid in supporting the receptacle in cup 10. It is to be noted that while the golf cup and receptacle can be formed from any materials, such as iron, steel, copper, brass, aluminum, wood, plastic, etc., it is preferred to construct the cup and receptacle each as unitary structures, from plastic materials.

While it is not essential to provide the receptacle with lifting means for lifting it out of the golf cup, in the preferred embodiment of this invention such lifting means are secured to the top edge of flange 36. One type of lifting means suitable for use in this invention comprises connecting rings 38 secured to the opposite sides of flange 36 in a conventional fashion. Handle 40 is then attached to the rings through the use of loops 42 which are formed at the opposite ends of the handle.

In using this invention, the golf cup is imbedded in the ground, as previously described, so that it is positioned for golng purposes. The lawn removed from the ground to position the golf cup therein is urged in inner receptacle 12 so that the blades of grass extend upwardly above flange 36. Accordingly, when receptacle 12 is fitted within golf cup 10 the cup is essentially concealed. When a substantial weight is placed on the lawn growing within the receptacle, as for example when an individual stands on the lawn, the weight is transferred to the top edge 16 and to bottom 18 of cup 10 and from thence to the surrounding soil without placing a breaking force on the sidewall of the receptacle. To remove the receptacle so that the golf cup can be used for golfing purposes handle 40 is grasped with the ngers and lifted upwardly whereupon the receptacle easily moves out of the golf cup even though substantial pressure was previously applied theret0.

Whereas there is here illustrated and specifically described a certain preferred apparatus which is presently regarded as the best mode of carrying out the invention, it should be understood that various changes can be made and other construction adopted without departing from the inventive subject matter particularly pointed out and claimed.

I claim:

1. A device adapted to be embedded in a lawn consisting of an upwardly opening golf cup receptacle adapted to be inserted into a hole provided therefor in a lawn, whereby the lawn surrounds and supports the golf cup receptacle in its upwardly opening position;

a hollow tubular sleeve fixed to and extending downwardly from the lowermost portion of the golt` cup receptacle to serve as a drain therefrom and to receive a mast therein;

a second receptacle having a sidewall adapted to fit snugly within the sidewall of the golf cup receptacle, ange means at the uppermost end of the sidewall of the second receptacle adapted to overlap and rest on the upper end of the sidewall of the golf cup receptacle, and a port through the bottom thereof in alignment with the sleeve to provide drainage from the second receptacle through the sleeve; and

lawn lilling and extending upwardly from the open top of the said second receptacle and extending upwardly to a point above the uppermost edge of the sidewall of the second receptacle, whereby when the ange on the sidewall of the second receptacle is resting on the sidewall of the golf-cup receptacle the lawn in the second receptacle forms a substantially smooth and contiguous continuation of the adjacent lawn in which said receptacles may be embedded.

2. A golf cup as in claim 1, wherein the bottom of the second receptacle for the largest portion thereof conforms to the shape of the bottom of the golf cup receptacle and is adapted to be supported thereon when said ange is resting on the upper end of the sidewall of the golf cup receptacle.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS v947,819 2/ 1910 Hinckley 273-34 1,882,963 10/1932 Scanlan. 2,062,684 12/ 1936 Thomas 47-41.1 3,309,814 3/1967 Langley 4741.1

FOREIGN PATENTS 23,425 9/ 1935 Australia.

r GEORGE J. MARLO, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 47-41 .l 

